Rt Hon Hilary Armstrong MP

Biographies are shown in the order in which speakers appear on the agenda

Mark Corney State level in the Department for Culture, Media Director and Sport. MC Consultancy Richard is a keen amateur sportsman, playing Mark Corney is director of MC Consultancy. He golf, football and cricket, and led the tour to specialises in post-14 education and skills South Africa of the House of Commons cricket policy. Mark writes regularly for the Education team in 1995. He was involved in taking the Guardian, Times Education Supplement and 'T' World Student Games to his native Sheffield in Magazine. 1991, as well as the successful bid to make Sheffield the key site in the UK Sports Institute network. Douglas Forman Chair, SkillsActive, and He served as Minister for Trade at the General Manager, West Lothian Leisure Ltd Department for Trade and Industry (1999-2001) and was Minister of State for the Regions, Douglas has held the post of SkillsActive chair Regeneration and Planning at the Department since it was created in 2003 and stood down at for the Environment, Transport and the Regions this year’s AGM. (1997-1999). He became a Privy Councillor in 1999. He was elected to the House of Douglas has 26 years of senior management Commons at the 1983 General Election, and experience in leisure, sports and art facilities. was the Member of the European Parliament West Lothian Leisure is a social enterprise with for Sheffield (1979-1984). charitable status, providing sports, leisure and learning opportunities that enhance the quality Richard was a Trade Union official at Firth of life and improve the health of the Brown Sheffield and a founder member of the communities it serves. Parliamentary Anti-Apartheid Movement. He was Vice President of the Sheffield Trades He has first hand knowledge of the Council and is a member of the Amalgamated development of specialist participation Engineering and Electrical Union. programme in leisure, such as the Sports Awards Schemes, GP Referral, Community Born in October 1943, Richard was educated at Health & Fitness initiatives and industry Hurfield Comprehensive School, Sheffield, Training in catering, cleaning, sport and leisure Granville College of Education and Sheffield services. He is a member of the Institute of Polytechnic. He is married with two children and Leisure & Amenity Management, the Scottish lives in Sheffield. Association of Directors of Leisure Services, the SQA PE and Sport Advisory Group, the SQA Sport and Leisure Assessment Panel. Jennie Price Chief Executive Officer Sport England Rt Hon Richard Caborn MP Minister for Sport Jennie Price became Chief Executive of Sport Department for Culture, Media and Sport England at the beginning of April 2007. Sport England’s priority role is to sustain and increase Rt Hon Richard Caborn, Member of Parliament investment in community sport. for Sheffield Central, was appointed Minister for Sport in June 2001. The post is at Minister of Until March 2007, Jennie was the founding Chief Executive of WRAP (the Waste & Conference Producers Neil Stewart Associates, PO Box 39976, 2nd Floor, 1 Benjamin Street, London, EC1M 5YT Email: [email protected] Internet: www.neilstewartassociates.com 1 Resources Action Programme), a not-for-profit provides services, products and systems for organisation set up by Government. WRAP coaching and sport. runs a major consumer campaign on recycling which has helped to double England’s recycling sports coach UK works closely with UK Sport, rate over the last four years. Sports Councils and Governing Bodies in the context of the UK Coaching Framework: a 3-7- A barrister by training, Jennie spent over 20 11 year action plan. The framework, which was years working in the construction industry, negotiated under Pat’s leadership has received initially as a lawyer, and then as a public affairs the support of all leading agencies and and political specialist. Governing Bodies in the UK, provides the reference point for the development of the UK She is also a Visiting Fellow of the Cranfield Coaching System as a world leader by 2016. School of Management. Prior to his appointment to sports coach UK in September 2005, Pat was the Director of the Sir Robin Wales National Coaching and Training Centre (NCTC), Board Member, LOCOG and based at the University of Limerick, Republic of Mayor, London Borough of Newham Ireland from 1994-2005. Under his leadership, NCTC was responsible for putting in place the Sir Robin Wales was elected Mayor of Newham National Coaching Development Programme, in 2002, after seven years as borough leader, which established a co-ordinated coach and is one of eleven democratically elected education structure for the Republic of Ireland. mayors in the country. During his term of office, the Centre also provided sports science and medical support for Robin comes from Kilmarnock and has a BSc in over 60 of Ireland’s medalists at European, Chemistry from Glasgow University. Before World, Olympic and Paralympic level. becoming Mayor, he was employed by BT, where he was responsible for developing credit He is currently Chairman of the European and fraud management systems. He has Coaching Council (a sub-committee of the extensive experience in IT, employee European Network of Sport Science, Education communications, customer services and and Employment) and Vice-President for logistics. Europe of the International Council for Coach Education. He has recently chaired the Robin was a councillor from 1982 to 1986 and Coaching Strand of the AEHESIS project and from 1992 to 2002, when he became Mayor. He the Review group on the European Framework was awarded a Knighthood in the Birthday for Coaching Qualifications. Honours List 2000 in recognition of his service to local government. He is a graduate in physical education of Thomond College of Education in Limerick. He has also completed a Masters degree in the Dr Pat Duffy teaching and administration of physical Chief Executive education and sport at Springfield College, sports coach UK Massachusetts, USA and a Ph D. on State policy in physical education and sport at St Patrick (Pat) Duffy is the Chief Executive of Patrick’s College, Maynooth, Ireland. Pat is a sports coach UK, a charity that has been former middle distance runner and coach and charged with the responsibility of leading the has also coached basketball to regional level. development of the UK Coaching system. He is married with five children. sports coach UK comprises of two companies with 150 employees and is headquartered in David Sparkes Leeds. Its trading subsidiary Coachwise Chief Executive Amateur Swimming Association Conference Producers Neil Stewart Associates, PO Box 39976, 2nd Floor, 1 Benjamin Street, London, EC1M 5YT Email: [email protected] Internet: www.neilstewartassociates.com 2 team which secured Government accreditation David Sparkes is the Chief Executive of the for the YMCA awarding body, Central YMCA Amateur Swimming Association. He was Qualifications. It awards certificates for exercise appointed in 1994 having previously served on qualifications to over 20,000 candidates per several National Committees including the ASA year. Coach Certificate Committee, the ASA Education Committee where he was Chairman Andrée joined the FIA in 1999. She is for 5 years, and the ASA Committee. He is a responsible for developing the FIA's public fully qualified Swimming Coach and has affairs strategy and is widely recognised as one successfully produced swimmers at County, of the industry’s most compelling ambassadors. District and National level. Andrée was an accomplished 10,000 meter runner before injury and ex-county hockey David has played a fundamental role in player. Cycling is now Andrée’s passion. A planning the future development of the sport, committed Chelsea FC season ticket holder including the appointment of a National Andrée has supported the team for over 20 Performance Director, with the aim of years. establishing Swimming in this country as a world power in International Swimming. Andy Westwood Member, Leitch Review of Skills team and Andree Deane Director, CESI Chief Executive Fitness Industry Association Andy Westwood is a Director at the Centre for Economic and Social Inclusion. Previously he Andrée is Chief Executive Officer of the Fitness was Head of Policy Research at the Work Industry Association (FIA), public affairs advisor Foundation. Andy has also worked for DFES to SkillsActive and board director of Sport and DWP, the Employment Policy Institute and England (London Region). in Further Education. He has published widely on skills, workforce development, welfare to After a seven year career as a Physical work and urban policy. Andy was seconded to Education teacher, Andree launched her career the Treasury for the last two years to advise in the health and fitness industry sector. She Lord Leitch in his Review of Skills published in has now worked in this sector for over 20 years. late 2006.

She is an author of the first Exercise and Andy is currently seconded part time to the Fitness NVQs and more recently, has DFES and the SSDA and is also a board represented the industry's interests at Whitehall member of the Learning and Skills Network. and Westminster including contributing to the Department of Health’s National Quality Assurance Framework and the recently Val Stevenson published White Paper on Public Health. Education and Training Manager Andrée has been a major driver in the ISPAL establishment of the Register of Exercise Professionals. Val has recently commenced her role as In 1987 Andrée established an instructor education and training manager for ISPAL. training company, Shape Fitness Education, which trained and qualified over 10,000 Previously the partnership director for exercise instructors and personal trainers. She Derbyshire Sport, the County Sports sold the company to Central YMCA (CYMCA) Partnership, she was a founder member and and was retained as a director at the CYMCA then executive officer for the National for a further six years. Andrée was part of the Association for Sports Development (NASD), a

Conference Producers Neil Stewart Associates, PO Box 39976, 2nd Floor, 1 Benjamin Street, London, EC1M 5YT Email: [email protected] Internet: www.neilstewartassociates.com 3 role she combined over the past few years with GLL won the Enterprising Solutions Award in raising two sporty young children. 2005 as well as being a finalist in Jamie Olivers’ Edge Training Awards. A graduate of both Sussex and Loughborough Universities, Val is a member of SkillsActive’s Further information on GLL is available at Professional Development Board and their www.gll.org Technical Groups responsible for reviewing the National Occupational Standards for Sports Development and Leisure Operations. Steve Philpott Chief Executive She is a lifelong fan of Bolton Wanderers FC! DC Leisure Management Ltd

Steve started in marketing and became Mark Sesnan Marketing Director of Whitbread Beers before Managing Director moving into the active leisure sector as MD of Greenwich Leisure Ltd (GLL) David Lloyd.

Mark is Managing Director of Greenwich He was a Director of the Fitness Industry Leisure Limited (GLL) which is the pioneering Association from 1995 until 2003 and a founder staff owned not for profit Leisure Social Trustee & Director of the Register of Exercise Enterprise that took over the operation of Professionals (REPs). He continues to act as a Greenwich Council’s leisure centres in 1993. Governor of REPs and is also Chairman of The GLL ‘model’ has now been replicated in Skills Active’s Sports and Fitness Employers’ more than 100 local authorities throughout the group. United Kingdom and leisure Social Enterprises provide a thriving and growing contribution to Steve joined DC Leisure in 2003. It is now the the modernising local government agenda. largest leisure facilities management company in the UK, working in partnership with around GLL itself now operates Crystal palace National 30 local authorities across 120 leisure centres. Sports Centre and all the public leisure centres The company’s aim is to get more people, more (69) in Greenwich, Waltham Forest, Newham, active, more often by delivering cost-effective Barnet, Merton, Hammersmith and Fulham, sports and active leisure programming for the Epsom and Ewell, Sutton, Ealing, Hackney, whole community in every location in which it Camden, Tower Hamlets and Lambeth London operates. Boroughs as well as being involved in a range of other partnership and regeneration initiatives. Steve volunteers as under 7’s football coach on GLL will turnover more than £65,000,000 in Sunday mornings for his local club. 2007 and employs around 3,300 people in London. GLL also co-sponsors the groundbreaking London Leisure College and is in the process of establishing the GLL London Sport Foundation to help young Londoner’s prepare for the Olympics.

Mark is also Chair of Social Enterprise London, is a member of the board of the Social Enterprise Coalition, and is Secretary of the Sports and Recreation Trusts Association (SpoRTA).

Conference Producers Neil Stewart Associates, PO Box 39976, 2nd Floor, 1 Benjamin Street, London, EC1M 5YT Email: [email protected] Internet: www.neilstewartassociates.com 4 Stephen Studd Stephen was elected President of the European Chief Executive Observatory for Sports and Employment SkillsActive (EOSE) last year.

Stephen has been Chief Executive of SkillsActive since its establishment in 2003. SkillsActive is the Sector Skills Council for the END Active Leisure and Learning Sector, an employer-led organisation recognised and licensed by government and charged with leading the skills and productivity drive within the Sport and Recreation, Health and Fitness, Playwork, The Outdoors and Caravan industries across the UK.

Stephen has worked in the industry since graduating from London University in 1975. Following on from seven years hands-on management experience at the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre, Stephen moved to the Sports Council HQ. Taking on a policy and strategic role, he took responsibility for the work of the Council and Sport and Recreational Management.

Following his secondment from the Sports Council in 1995 to establish SPRITO as the industry training organisation and on to be the National Training Organisation, Stephen has been core to the development of the Sector organisation for education and training.

Stephen used his knowledge of the national skills agenda and his strategic and management capability to work closely with employers in the Sector to establish SkillsActive as the Sector Skills Council for Active Leisure and Learning in 2003 following the government’s Skills White Paper.

The organisation is dedicated to the needs of business by helping to improve their competitiveness and productivity, with an aim of bringing together employer, educators and government with a united agenda of employer- led action on skills.

Conference Producers Neil Stewart Associates, PO Box 39976, 2nd Floor, 1 Benjamin Street, London, EC1M 5YT Email: [email protected] Internet: www.neilstewartassociates.com 1